Roleplaying Low Essence, How do you adjudicate? Options

[Pavlov]

Although I generally play mundanes with an Essence somewhere between 3 and 5, every so often I like to play a pile of chrome well below the 0.5 mark. Plus, as a long-time Shadowrun GM, I've spent a lot of time thinking about how Essence impacts social interactions in a non-dice mechanic way. For example, what's the difference between a Essence 6 and Essence .01 sex drive? Do SpecOp teams (don't really use them) have super-low Essences and if so, what affect does that have on esprit de corps? If the unit is supposed to be more important than the skills of an individual member, would a group of .01 toasters really spend the emotional time and energy bonding with one another?

Generally, my PCs and NPCs with high Bio Indexes pop Cipro on a daily basis; a low Essence character will have a hard time motivating for something he's not wired to do.

What sort of tell-tale signs of low Essence have you used?

[Ezra]

I have always favoured the "fleshy bags of mainly meat" syndrome from Cyberpunk 2020. The CP2020 rules for Cyberpsychosis are IMHO pretty much the best around.

When players start getting down to seriously low levels of essence, I normally start describing feelings of Disassociation, Apathy and a general disregard for the value of human life.

With regards teamwork amongst cybered individuals and an esprit de corps, I normally allow it to develop normally. I see nothing wrong with it......just that it will be founded on slightly different principles. Instead of letting them truly value one another as humans, I let the emphasis lie more on an admiration of combat ability, or even a "Cool" factor.
:)

[spotlite]

We have no hard and fast rules for it (though those CP rules seem to invite further attention...), but basically if someone with very low essence doesn't have or develop more than a few personality flaws I'll be having a word with them about it. I just feel that SOMEthing would be odd/different about the character: even if its a decker with a head full of gear so all that's showing it his eyes and jack (maybe not even those), he's got so much metal in his brain he just can't be normal, right? And if its an 'improved' human type with obvious limbs and the rest then I'm afraid he wasn't normal to start with - you look down EVERY day and see metal arms, and lack many (though not all) touch sensations - Of COURSE they're going to feel disassociated.

However, how they roleplay it is up to them (if a player). Maybe they're kill crazy, or start to only get interested in runs if they get to blow things up because at least then they feel something, or even that they become very dependent and loyal so that at least they have emotional contact, or whatever. But I want to see some roleplaying out of it.

But think about it - most of the heavy cybered characters ARE very 'odd' personality wise in how they're played. From the decker who doesn't want to deal with that 'touching stuff' or going outside, to the speed-freak rigger, and on to the full body conversion combat-junkie streem sam, they're all already bizarre. So having your NPCs react oddly to them is perfectly reasonable. Equally, as a GM you owe it to your players to make your NPCs beleiveable, so if they have loads of crap installed in them, THEY are probably going to be odd in some way, even if it only manifests as a completely emotionless Mr Johnson (hah! Assense THAT, mr mage...).

That make sense?

[Backgammon]

Officially, low essence does not affect a person in SR. You only suffer from the impact of dicrimination certain people feel about having a half machine in front of them.

[spotlite]

I agree. let me add '... our house rules are that...' before the whole post!

[HMHVV Hunter]

I was kinda wondering about that myself. You see, I'm in the process of making a street sam based on Ash from Army of Darkness (he's a wise-cracking former file clerk for Mitsuhama that turned shadowrunner).

He has enough cyberware to bring him down to an Essence of 0.71, among them a fully cybernetic left arm complete with cybergun, spurs, improved hand razors, and some other enhancements.

And yet I gave him a Charisma of 5.

Does that seem out of line? I have a feeling it would depend on the GM, but I'm asking you guys, would that seem out of line to have a smart-ass Charisma 5 street sam with an Essence that low in your game?

[Pavlov]

For those unfamiliar with the game Spycraft, it's a d20 game that resembles Shadowrun in some respects, but it much more comic-book/pulp than grit. Anyway, one of the feats in there is "Glint in the Eye," which basicaly means people believe you ARE just crazy enough to do it. (Shoot the hostage, chew your own leg off, etc.)

That's how I see high Charisma/low Essence characters. I mean, if Ash showed up at a huge New Year's bash, he might be pretty popular (minus the chainsaw thing), but if you met him today, he'd be a little strange and I'm not sure how long I'd stick around him. After all, he isn't exactly well adjusted.

Plus, he demonstrates one the classic signs of low Essence behaviour: the inability to forge emotional relationships. That was just pillowtalk, baby. :D

[HMHVV Hunter]

Yeah, except my character doesn't have the chainsaw attachment - that's what the cyberarm with all the add-ons was for.

[Pavlov]

Har! I should hope not, unless you spend your time with crazed gangers, I don't care what your character's Charisma is in that case. My reference to Ash attending a party was directed at the movie character. He seems like a fun guy if everyone's got a few drinks in him, but he's not someone a loan officer at a bank is going to help start up a small business.

[Ol' Scratch]

Essence doesn't have anything to do with empathy or your mental stability. It's a measure of your body's cohesiveness and holistic strength (SR3 p. 41); basically, one form of how physically healthy you are. The social penalty for cyberware uses Essence as a convenient measure of how much chrome you have in your body; note that implants that aren't obvious have no effect on social interaction. If it was due to some metaphysical/mental aspect of Essence, that wouldn't matter.

Cyberpunk 2020 is not Shadowrun.

[Arelius]

Ware does affect the "spiritual" aspects of a character. Otherwise being a cyberzombie would have no effect on personality and astral space.

[Ol' Scratch]

Essence is a measure of your physical health. When it hits 0, you're the very epitome of "not healthy" -- you're dead. Being a cyberzombie has an effect on personality and astral space because you're dead, but foul and profane magics are keeping you alive. The more technology you cram into the corpse, the more magic you need to keep it going, hence the greater effects.

[moosegod]

You could argue that the cyberzombie aspect because they are dead and are a violation of the laws of nature and mana.

[nezumi]

It seems to me that shadowrun has set it up such that the effects of cyberware are really dependant on how you deal with it. It's strictly internal. There are people who have VCRs or skillwires that eat up 5 points of essence, but probably have little difficulty dealing with other people. After all, you really can't see the chrome, and I can't imagine being able to learn stuff instantly would suddenly make you feel not human (being one with a tow truck might, however).

I suppose the closest comparison I can see for it is perhaps the difference between someone living a healthy lifestyle and someone who doesn't. You know the health nuts who won't eat much meat because it's a 'heavy' 'dirty' food, and who refuse to drink beer at all. Or Jewish people who choose not to eat pork because its against God's covenant. I'd compare those people to high essence people; people who work hard to understand their bodies and what goes into it. I, however, enjoy beer and potato chips. I'll take a couple of data jacks and a skillwire for that test coming up. It's just my fat body. Am I less empathic or human because of my choices? No. Am I less holistic, my body less sharp and perhaps without the natural glow of someone who actually cares about what they eat? Yes. If I body were a temple, it wouldn't make so much friggin belly button lint, I say.

Hrm.. don't know if that made a whole lot of sense, but hopefully people can see where I'm going. There is a line between living healthy (6 essence), living normally (3-5 essence) and pigging out like a drunk frat boy (.05-2 essence).

I do however like the 'random' essence loss of CP2020, and it being dependent on your empathy. I am slightly tempted to try some of that stuff out in an SR game....

[Siege]

That's gonna be a little tough -- CP has a lot more wiggle room than the SR system.

Although you can enforce the "lots of cyber make people nervous" ruling in one of the books.

You then have to fine-tune it to cover "obvious vs subtle" netics and so on.

-Siege

[Tanka]

As was stated earlier, only cyberzombies take a hit to social interactions, and people with obvious 'ware (cyberlimbs/torso/head, articulate arms, dermal plating/sheathing, obvious eye and ear mods, etc). I doubt they'd react badly to somebody with a datajack, as most people have them, including children.

I can make a perfectly socially tolerable person with .01 Essence. Nothing sticking out, and nothing that makes it obvious that I have low Essence.

Again, they only thing people really react badly to is obvious chrome and cybermancy.

[BumsofTacoma]

[HMHVV Hunter]

[Solidcobra]

I don't think that low essence has any effect on one by itself.... i mean, it's just a little extra speed, apart from the "god they are slow" factor nothing should change by that...
Someone with all cyberlimbs, cybertorso and a cyberskull would on the other hand be a lot more "Cyberzombie"... since he can't feel anything except for pain, and only if they hit him in the chest......

Now, let's take my character as a example....
She has a essence of .8 something, not too low, not too high.....
now, she has only one piece of cyber that could change her personality, the wired reflexes II..... and the fact that she will probably soon be hooked on Jazz, will make her feel as if the world is going WAY too slowly, only when she meets another wired person would she feel as if anything sped up a little, and then mostly only in combat and bed......
The pieces of cyber she has that has a effect on her social life are few: Only her jumpiness from the wires and her balance tail.... the first people could notice, but since she also has a legal job in the military it's not a big deal, the tail is worse.... she will be regarded as a freak by Joe and Jane schmoe, if she says "i get knocked down a lot in my work, and it improves my sex-life!" they would just shrug and look away.....
But that shouldn't affect the more professional people, Fixers, Johnsons, Runners... you know....
And even if Joe/Jane Schmoe would hate her tail, they would still like her, 3 Charisma, rolls 8 dice in Negotiations (Phermones 4-ever!), a little less in etiquette..... she IS a nice person, if you can get your eyes off her tail (and her chest) and get to know her....
sadly Jane and Joe Schome won't.........

[lodestar]

Low essence characters usually have some reason for having their cyberware and associated psycological problems. The two most cybered characters I've played Lodestar (essence 1.00) and Ivan (essence 0.26) are good examples. In the case of Lode, he's been disillusioned by the advantages his cyber has gotten him, because he's been considered obsolete. He tends to be bitter and sometimes reckless. (fortunately for him he has the skills to back it up) Ivan on the othe hand basically struck a deal with the devil so to speak for his cyberware which was largely required to return him to a functioning person. As a result of the incident that put him in this place he suffers from flashbacks (as per the flaw) as well as tending to suffer from manic depressive qualities. If he's not busy he tends to brood on whether the resulting combat monster he is now was worth it. Your characters may have similar problems.

[gknoy]

[Tanka]

Oh, another thing. Depending on the 'ware, they may suffer from Disasociation from Humanity as a whole, or just from their feelings and emotions. With some things, there are no downfalls, because it's all perfectly legal stuff, or they have an actual physical need for it.

Let me randomly throw together somebody with low Essence who didn't do it to be better as a 'runner.

Left Cyberarm (Got his arm chewed up during work): 1.0
Eye Replacements (Bright flash burned out his retinas): 0.2
Ear Replacements (Loud bang broke his eardrum): 0.3
Auto-injector (He tends to suffer some rejection issues, so he has some stuff to stop that): 0.1
Biomonitor (Doctors are worried about him due to the rejection issues): 0.3
Air Filtration System 6 (Severe allergy to pollutants): 0.6
Right Cyberhand (Broke it once too many on his desk from getting angry): 0.35

Thus far, he's at 3.15 Essence, and just because he's had a run of bad luck in his life. No telling what happens if he has no limb muscles, making him get three more full limbs just to be able to move about under his own free will.

He'd've probably gotten over it all by now, and reacts fairly well with others. If anybody doesn't know him, they might be scared, but he's well liked and gets along well with others.

[cykotek]

I suggest everyone read through the "Cyberware and Social Interaction" secton, pg 93 (SR3). It rambles on through modifiers for cyberware (+1 to all social TNs per 2 points of Essence under 6, round up). It also talks about how GMs should apply these modifiers at his discretion, i.e., a higher target number when trying to get information out of a holistics healer, while a lower or nonexistent target number when dealing with the barkeep at a cyberfreaks bar. If you keep reading, it talks about higher penalties for obviously outlandish 'ware, and lower adjustments for hidden or concealed 'ware. (The difference between obvious and concealed cyberlimbs). Active reaction enhancement (Wired Reflexes, Move-by-wire) should always be counted, as the effects are obvious (another reason for a reflex trigger). This is all well and good, and I think everyone so far wouldn't really argue these points.

The important bit is at the very end. "However, the GM should always apply a minimum modifier of +1 for a character with Essence loss greater than 2.5, unless the circumstances are exceptional." That line right there suggests that there is some eventual level of mental effect. You have to leave the realm of datajacks, replacement limbs from most car accidents, and fashionable cybereyes. I'd call exceptional circumstances someone who's thrown extra money at high-end, quality implants, counseling, and special, low-visibility models, for example. It's only so long before driving a car with your mind from 2 miles away, being able to sprint at 40mph, or bench-pressing Buicks is going to affect your personality. It's still your game, though.

That said, it's still easy to imagine a high charisma/low essence character, if you're going to use these social interaction/personality effects. Basically, that combination would mean that, as cold as you are, there's something about you that people still pay attention to. They may not like you, may not agree with what you say, but they're going to at least listen.

[Kagetenshi]

I personally have my characters lose touch not so much with the rest of humanity as with the capabilities of the rest of humanity. For instance, a character with low-light, thermographic, and ultrasound vision leading a human into a pitch-black warehouse probably won't think to give them a light source unless they do this sort of thing a lot. A decker with a math SPU won't think twice about spitting out the proper tip to six decimal places immediately at a restaurant, or calculating the speed of a car based on how quickly it goes six feet. A sammy with a smartlink-II will think that action movies are silly because after three shots with a pistol someone should've been dead. Someone with move-by-wire 4 will think nothing of catching something someone else drops before it hits the ground; same with synaptic accelerators.
I let the players handle these effects, as they vary depending on how long you've had the 'ware for. Someone who just got a mnemonic enhancer will be amazed at the detail of his or her memory, while someone who has had one for five years will think it odd that others can't remember twenty-digit numbers the first time they're told them.

~J

[Tanka]

Kagetenshi: All I have to say is: "Ha, you're so right."

Oh, and remember the jumpiness if the Wire is fresh. Making them do Willpower checks after failing a Perception test to see if they blow the kid's brains out or not is a good way to train them to use those crazy Reflex Triggers.